Mutual trade between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan exceeds $4 billion

Over the 10 months of this year, mutual trade between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan amounted to $4 billion, having increased by almost 35%. This was reported by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan Serik Zhumangarin, speaking today in Tashkent in the framework of the 4th Interregional Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan Business Forum.

The forum opened with a plenary session attended by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan Serik Zhumangarin and Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Jamshid Khojaev. The business forum was held as part of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's state visit to Tashkent.

"Uzbekistan is a key and long-term partner for us in Central Asia. The locomotive of our friendly relations has been the developing trade between the countries. Kazakhstan attaches great importance to the development of interaction in the Central Asian track. The forum is another proof of the importance of developing regional cooperation and building Central Asian brands in the global market," Zhumangarin said.

In his turn, Jamshid Khodjaev expressed confidence that joining efforts to create high-tech productions based on comparative advantages, developing industrial cooperation to produce products with high added value to further joint development of international markets acquires special importance. 

"We have a huge potential to multiply joint mutually beneficial projects. We already have everything we need for that - production, technological, human and natural resources. I am confident that with a coordinated, diligent joint work, we will be able to raise the Uzbek-Kazakh partnership to a qualitatively new level," the Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan added.

Currently, following the state visit of President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Kazakhstan in December 2021, the two governments are facing the task of bringing the volume of trade up to $10 billion. A key element of the plan of practical actions to achieve this goal is the creation of the International Center for Industrial Cooperation "Central Asia". Its aim is to become the main site of the North-South Central Asian economic corridor for the creation of joint products for export to third-country markets.

Within the framework of industrial cooperation between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan more than 38 projects worth $2.2 billion with the creation of about 11 thousand jobs are planned. Of these, 10 joint projects have already been implemented, half of which are in Kazakhstan. Active work on others is underway.

Speaking at the forum Serik Zhumangarin underlined the special role of foreign investments attracted to the economies of the two countries. In the period from 2005 to the second quarter of 2022, the gross inflow of foreign direct investments from Uzbekistan to Kazakhstan amounted to $22.7 million. Investments of Kazakhstan's investments in Uzbekistan's economy for the same period amounted to $560 million.

"Given the small size of each country's economy separately, I believe that Central Asia must act as a united front in attracting international capital. For this purpose, Kazakhstan has already created all the necessary infrastructure, which includes the site of the Astana International Financial Center, and investment preferences. We are ready to act as a gateway for investors to our region," Serik Zhumangarin addressed the Business Forum participants.

He also noted that Kazakhstan will continue to work to create a favorable investment climate, and invited Uzbek companies to take part in joint projects.

At the end of the business forum, Serik Zhumangarin and Jamshid Khojaev held a bilateral meeting with the heads of the two countries' authorized bodies, during which they discussed in detail cooperation in various sectors of the economy.

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